The Seychelles is an archipelago of over 100 islands located off the east coast of Africa in the Indian Ocean. The capital and largest city is Victoria, on the island of Mahe, which is home to 90% of the population. The islands have a tropical climate without extremes, and the main ethnic groups are Creole, Indian, and Malagasy. Tourism is the main economic industry, providing over 30% of jobs and 70% of foreign currency. Maintaining a sustainable water supply is a key challenge given the country's dependence on catchments for rainwater.

1. Geography – 9 th grade Jessica Jensen

2. Seychelles: Location Archipelago : a large group or chain of islands Located in western Indian Ocean Northeast of Madagascar

3. Seychelles: Location Lies between 4 and 10 degrees south of equator Located between 480 km and 1600 km from east coast of Africa

4. Seychelles: Capital & Cities Victoria : located on island of Mahe Home to 90 percent of the population 72000 inhabitants Praslin : second largest island Praslin: 6500 inhabitants 45 km northeast of Mahe

5. Seychelles: Major Landforms 116 individual islands 41 inner islands – oldest mid-oceanic granite islands on Earth 75 outer islands - coralline islands Outer islands – low lying coral atolls Largest raised coral atoll – Aldabra Atoll : ring-shaped coral reef or a string of closely spaced small coral islands, enclosing or nearly enclosing a shallow lagoon

6. Seychelles: Climate Traditionally warm and without extremes Temperature normally between 24 and 32 degrees Celsius (75.2 and 89.6 degrees Fahrenheit) Humid climate with strong maritime influence No distinct dry season

7. Seychelles: Demographics Ethnic groups : Creoles, Indians and Malagasy Language : English – official language of the Seychelles (4.9%) Language : Creole – dominant language of the Seychelles (91.8%) Religion : Roman Catholics (82.3%)

8. Seychelles: Government Republic form of government with executive, legislative and judicial branches Located in capital city of Victoria Current president: James Michel Elected April 24, 2004

9. Seychelles: Major Resources & Natural Hazards Main natural resources : fish, copra, cinnamon trees Copra : dried meat of the coconut Natural hazards : floods and short droughts Lies outside of the cyclone belt

10. Seychelles: Environmental Issues Environmental issues Climate change Conservation of the threatened marine turtle Dependency of water supply on catchments Catchments: device used to capture and retain rainwater and run-off

11. Seychelles: Economic Factors Major Industries: Tourism – 30 percent of labor force; provides 70 percent of hard currency earnings Fishing Processing of coconuts, vanilla, coir (coconut fiber) rope

12. Seychelles: Economic Factors Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per Capita (PPP): $21,600 PPP : (purchasing power parity) measure of long-term equilibrium based on price levels of two countries Simplified PPP: indicator of country’s economic health Labor Force Composition: Primary – 3% Secondary – 30.8% Tertiary – 66.2%

13. Seychelles: Education Population growth rate: 0.996 Life expectancy: 73.28 years Literacy rate: 91.8 percent of the population over 15 can read and write

14. Seychelles: Current Issue Need for potable water supply Lack of rainwater / desalination plants not working at full capacity Places strong emphasis on water conservation

15. Seychelles: Reasons to Visit Two UNESCO World Heritage sites: Aldabar Atoll – outer island; largest raised coral atoll on Earth Vallee de Mai Nature Reserve: home to the coco de mer palm; located on inner island of Praslin